“Your 2025 Part Time Job Playbook”
If you’ve just landed in Victoria and need cash for rent, flat whites and the Great Ocean Road—all without blowing your student-visa limit—here’s the streamlined plan. Below you’ll find the 48-hour rule in plain English, then a punch-list for the three part-time niches that hire international students fastest: aged-care support, hospitality, and on-campus roles. Everything is mapped to the certificate or licence recruiters ask for, the going pay rates, and the job boards where real shifts appear every day.
1 | Know (and respect) the 48-hour cap
From 1 July 2023 the work limit for most Student (500) visa holders rose from 40 to 48 hours per fortnight during teaching periods; it’s still unlimited in official breaks minister.homeaffairs.gov.auDepartment of Home Affairs Website. Break the rule and you risk visa cancellation, so treat the cap like a budget: two six-hour café shifts plus an eight-hour Saturday aged-care shift already hits A$800+ before tax—well inside the limit, and perfectly legal under the National Minimum Wage (A$24.10 p/h from 1 July 2024) Fair Work Ombudsman.
Pro setup: apply online for your Tax File Number the moment you have an Aussie address Australian Taxation Office, then install Fair Work’s free Record My Hours app so every minute worked is logged if pay issues pop up later Fair Work Ombudsman.
2 | Aged-Care Support – your “cert ticket”
What you need Fast facts CHC33021 Cert III in Individual Support (or Cert IV Ageing Support)120 hours of supervised placement, 6–9 months full-time; Free TAFE for eligible visas Victoria University, Australia Victorian Skills Gateway National Police Check~A$50, 24–48 h through Victoria Police Victoria Police Aged-Care Worker Screening (rolling out nationally)Process mirrors the NDIS check; fee TBA Australian Taxation Office First-Aid + Manual-Handling$120–160 via Red Cross / St John
Pay: Casual careers start around A$30–35 p/h, jumping to $45+ on weekends under the Aged-Care Award 2025 Fair Work Calculator.
Boards that work: SEEK → filter “Aged Care PCA casual VIC” Department of Home Affairs Website; government My Aged Care Careers portal Australian Taxation Office; and Study Melbourne’s Career Catalyst internships each semester Study Melbourne.
CV hack: open with your placement tally—“Completed 120 hours dementia & ADL care at BlueCross Chelsea”—so recruiters know you can start solo night shifts.
3 | Hospitality – fastest first job
Licences first
RSA (Responsible Service of Alcohol) – mandatory before you pour wine in Victoria; four-hour VCGLR course, ≈ A$65 liquorportal.vcglr.vic.gov.au.
Food-Safety Level 1 – a bonus for kitchen-hand ads (cheap e-learning; add to LinkedIn).
Typical pay: A$27–33 p/h casual, with +25 % Saturday and +50 % Sunday loadings under the Restaurant Award Fair Work CalculatorFair Work Ombudsman.
Where gigs appear
Platform Edge SEEK “RSA” filter – >200 listings across Melbourne CBD & suburbs SeekAttach RSA PDF + an availability grid Sidekicker – app for single-day café/stadium shifts sidekicker.com Keep profile at 100 %; first three shifts lock in a rating#HospoJobsMelbourne Insta/FB Indie cafés post same-day roles
Remember: no employer can offer under the $24.10 minimum, licence or not Fair Work Ombudsman.
4 | On-Campus Roles – study-proof income
Universities pay A$38–48 p/h, pause rosters in exam weeks, and love hiring their own students.
UniPortalCommon gigsMelbourneLibrary HR board for Student Library Assistants & exam invigilators LibraryShelving, help-deskMonash“Jobs for Students” via Career Connect sidekicker.comReception, research-assistant poolsAny Vic campusEquity officePeer-tutoring & note-taking (disability services)
Boost your chances: polish your résumé and interview style via Career Catalyst webinars; uni recruiters often sit on the panels Study Melbourne.
5 | Pay-slip & scam safety
Every slip must list ABN, hours, gross, tax & super—missing fields breach the Fair Work Act; screenshot each one Fair Work Ombudsman.
Never pay “training fees” up front—legit cafés and aged-care homes train free.
Underpaid? Call Fair Work Infoline 13 13 94 (interpreters available) Fair Work Ombudsman.
6 | One-page prep checklist
Cert III/IV letter of enrollment or transcript
RSA PDF saved to phone + printout
National Police Check email
TFN + Aussie bank account
Two local refs (placement supervisor counts)
1-page Aussie-style résumé
TL;DR
Stick to 48 hrs/fortnight, get your Cert III/IV or RSA before you apply, and harvest shifts from SEEK, Sidekicker and your uni’s job board. Line up those documents now and you’ll move from “keen to work” to “shift confirmed” before your myki auto-top-up triggers. Good luck—and may your first pay-slip hit before the next tram rolls in.
